General Advice

Having practiced Oriental medicines for over ten years and seen well over 3000 patients in Asia and the West, there are certain patterns, underlying causes and influencing factors that relate to all people and all illnesses. Here I have outlined the advice I give to all my patients because if any of the following areas are not in balance, achieving health can be very challenging. However, I have noticed that when these factors are assessed and small improvements made, healing occurs effortlessly and swiftly.

Diet

I cannot stress enough the importance of a complete analysis of the diet due to the overwhelming prevalence of dangerous toxins, highly potent sugars, addictive flavourings, hormone inhibiting emulsifiers and stabilizers, and E numbers now being sold on every shelf of the super market! Anything from bread to low-fat yoghurt could kill you these days and I’m not exaggerating.

Even just a small weekly dose of some of these substances can cause sugar addiction, fat storage on the organs, lethargy, respiratory tract impairment, diabetes, and the list goes on. We can work together to ensure that everything you put in your mouth will enhance the healing process rather than impede it. This also means that the treatment course will be greatly shortened and patients can put in practice eating habits that will result in long-term health. Food is medicine!

Work / Life Balance

If you are working more hours than you are relaxing or moving, and your work entails long hours in a stationary position in front of a computer or in a high stress environment, coupled with a negative frame of mind, you are likely to be suffering from a suppressed immune system. If you are also regularly anxious, rushing, nervous or fearful, the body will be operating in “fright or flight” mode which is designed to help you get out of dangerous situations but for only short times. When this happens, the energy goes to your brain and extremities, but is taken away from your organs. Too long in this state and any number of conditions can arise.

Small changes made to your working patterns can lead to great improvements in health; something as simple as stepping away from the computer every 40 minutes, breathing deeply or going outside can kick start the immune system and switch off “fright or flight”. Working out what you love in life and making time for yourself will also help.

Meditation

I wholeheartedly advise all my patients to conduct daily meditation, even just for ten minutes in the morning and evening. Complete recovery is possible only when the patterns of the mind support it. Many of us suffer from unruly, untrained minds that jump from one subject to another like monkeys in a tree. Over stimulation from bright digital images, the media and the demands of our busy lives means that some of us never experience true mental stability or the silence of the mind. When the mind is silent the body fulfils its natural role of healing. For further information of the techniques Lucy practices please go to www.dharma.org.

The most basic meditation and breathing techniques are taught during treatments and can be used at home during moments of stress. It is very important to understand how your pre-existing perceptions and mental patterns affect your health, this is a great 20 minute TED talk on recent research in this area. Click here to view.

Daylight

Every doctor learnt on their first day in medical school, biology 101, that all living organisms on the planet require the sun’s light to be born, grow, regenerate and die; and that the human body is the most magnificent and complex of all the living organisms on the planet. If one doesn’t get a certain amount of daylight everyday, all the functions of the body will be affected, negatively. When this occurs chronically over months and years (which it does for many chronically ill people) a whole array of conditions can occur based on an underlying suppressed immune system. By simply adding an hour of daylight to your day, a body-wide immune system boost occurs allowing your body to withstand the disease you encounter everywhere, it also facilitates better digestion of food, enhanced stress responses and mental calm.